Cigarette rod former and compressor



Feb. 26, 1935. G. w. GWINN I 1,992,749

CIGARETTE ROD FORMER AND COMPRESSOR Filed May 22, 1934 INVENTOR r I .57 24 d// Zaai f ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 26, 1935 CIGARETTE ROD FORMER AND COMPRESSOR George W. Gwinn, Hewlett, N. Y., assignor to American Machine & Foundry Company, a. corporation of New Jersey Application May 22, 1934, Serial No. 726,994

11 Claims.

This invention relates to a cigarette rod former and compressor and is designed to improve continuous rod cigarette machines in general and particularly those of the type disclosed in the U. S. Letters Patent to Bronander 1,915,513, dated June 27, 1933.

In increasing the speeds of cigarette machines, one diiculty which arises is that of preventing choking at the tongue which reduces the rod to substantially its final cigarette diameter. It is common to nnd that a cigarette machine works perfectly in this respect at moderate speeds and when its speed is raised to 1200 to 1500 cigarettes per minute or higher speeds, the rod breaks due to the choking at the restricted portion of the tongue. One of the principal objects of theinvention therefore is to provide means for preventing this choking which will feed the tobacco in properly compressed condition so that it will pass through the tongue without choking, at any speed within the range of the remainder of the machine.` To this end itis an object of the invention to combine belt forwarding means with a compressor wheel so as to forward the tobacco While compressing the same between moving surfaces on all Vsides of the tobacco stream. Since certain diiiculties areattendant on the use of compressor wheels such as a tendencypf the tobacco to follow around the wheel, it is another object toprovide tobacco guiding structure for guiding the tobacco under and past'the compressor wheel which serves to strip the tobacco from the wheel on the delivery side thereof, and .which cooperates with conventional doctoring means to prevent tobacco from being lost past the joint between the doctoring means and the compressor wheel surface. Still another object is to provide means for compressing the tobacco stream prior to its nal compression in the `rod forming tongue with a minimum of friction tending to resist movement of the tobacco stream and resulting choking.

With these and other objects .not specically mentioned in View, the invention consists in certainl constructions and combinations which will be hereinafter fully .described and then particularly pointed out in the claims hereunto Vappended.

Referring now to the drawing inwhich `like characters oi reference indicate the same and like parts:

Fig. 1 is a sectional View in elevation of the improved cigarette rod former and compressor;

i Fig. 2 is a plan view partly in section of the mechanism shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional end elevation on the 3 3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. i is a sectional end elevation taken on the line 4 4 of Fig. l; and

Fig. 5 is a sectional end elevation taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 1.

In carrying the invention into effect, there is provided in combination with means for forwarding tobacco to a cigarette rod former to which the tobacco is forwarded, together with a compressor wheel having a slottedperipheryin contact with the forwarded tobacco to compress the same, and a tongue `is provided extending into the slotted periphery of the wheel, having a tobacco engaging surface extending across an upwardly moving peripherial portion of the Wheel to strip the tobacco therefrom.

In one form of the invention there is combined with means for forwarding a stream of line tobacco irom'a tobacco feed, co-acting belts warped from a V relation to support the tobacco to a vertically parallel relationship together with a compressor wheel acting on top of the tobacco stream between the belts. In the best constructions,` the compressor wheel is driven by frictional contact betwen its side walls and the belts. In this embodiment the compressor wheel may be slotted at its periphery and a narrow compressor tongue extendedthrough the slotted periphery to guide the tobacco under and past the compressing position oi said wheel, the portion extending on the delivery side of the wheel acting tc strip the tobacco from the'wheel. In a pre:- ferred embodiment, the rear side of the rod former tongue cooperates with the peripheral surface of the compressor wheel to scrape or doctor said surface. The various means referred to may be varied widely in construction within the scope of the claims, for the particular device selected to illustrate the invention is but one of many possible concrete embodiments of the same. The invention therefore Vis notto be restricted to the precis-e details shown and described nor to the particular embodiments chosen as illustrative or" the invention.

Turning now to the embodiment illustrated `in the drawing, theA invention is shown in connection with the mechanism in the patent `to Bronander, above identified. In the patent,-the

tobacco is shown falling `from the feed onto the forwarding belts 15, these belts being in substantially the same relationship as shown in Fig, 5. The belts are guided in a trough 16 under an inclined guide or block 17 which directs the higher portions of the stream of tobacco under 1 a narrow compressor tongue 18 having an inclined compressing surface 19, suitably mounted on the trough 16 by a T bar 20 secured by thumb screws 21 threaded into flanges 22 of the trough. The guide block 17 also serves to guide the V belts against the walls of the trough 16 as shown in Fig. 5. y

Near the forward end of the guide block 17, the cigarette paper P and under it the tape T passes under the tobacco stream through a gap between the trough bottom plate 23 and the guide plate 24. Thus the tongue 19 acts to compress the forwarded tobacco against the paper and between the belts which taire the position shown in Fig. 4 at the mid-portion of this tongue 19.

As will be seen from Figs. 3, 4 and 5, the V belts` are gradually warped from a V position as shown in Fig. 5, back of the entrance 'of the cigarette paper to a vertical position in spaced parallel relationship to each other as shown in Fig. 3. At this position a compressor wheel 25 is located of a width equal approximately to the distance between the belts at this point so that frictional contact between the belts and the side walls may drive the compressor wheel, thus simplifying the machine though it is contemplated that the compressor wheel may be positively driven, if desired.

The wheel 25 is suitably secured on a shaft 26 mounted in bearings 27 and 28 being suitably secured against a shoulder of the shaft by a nut 29. As shown in Fig. 3, the periphery of this compressor wheel is provided with a circumferential slot 30 and into this slot passes the point 31 of the tongue 18 with the lower surface 19 a little above the lowermost portion of the wheel periphery so that compression at the most restricted part of the stream is produced by the moving surface of the wheel. The tip of the tongue point passes beyond the delivery side of the operating surface of the compressor wheel and under the rod former tongue 32 serving to act as a positive stripping means by reason of the fact that it passes across the surface of the upwardly moving wheel periphery. Thus, the stream as a whole is held down and stripped down from the wheel, at this point, by the tongue portion 31. The rear edge of the rod former tongue 32 is tted to the surface of the compressor wheel to either side of the slot 30 to serve as a doctor on said surface.

It will be noted that at the point of extreme compression which is most likely to be the choke point of the cigarette machine, namely, that at which the section shown in Fig. 3 is taken, the tobacco stream is carried forward between moving surfaces on all sides, the only stationary surface being the very narrow one of the tongue y 18. This pre-compression of the tobacco stream before reaching the small end (not shown) of the tongue 32, relieves this critical point of a part, or if desired, most of the compressing function, so the machine is substantially free from chokes at any speed of which the mechanism as a whole is capable. This arrangement is also believed to prevent a common source of cigarettes having partially filled places in them, thought to be `caused by momentary hanging back of tobacco at the point of maximum compression.

The belts 15, after passing the rear end of the tongue 32 travel around pulleys 33 and idler pulleys 34 to a position to return through the trough 16 as shown in the patent above referred to. It is noted that the tongue 18 because of its narrowness produces relatively little friction while at the same time it constricts the more or less matted stream, prior to its passing under the compressor wheel. One of the advantages of the arrangement of the tongue tip 31 passing through the compressor to strip the tobacco from the same is that it is not dependent on an extremely accurate adjustment of one surface with respect to another as is the conventional doctor or scraper.

What is claimed is:

l. In a continuous rod cigarette machine, the combination with a pair of belts arranged in V formation to forward a stream of tobacco from a tobacco feed, of paper guide structure for guiding a cigarette paper strip under said belts, means for warping said belts to part their lower edges and lay the tobacco on the paper, a compressor wheel acting on the top of the tobacco stream to press the same against the paper, said wheel having a slot in its periphery and a narrow stationary compressor tongue acting on said tobacco stream and extending through said slot;

2. In a continuous rod cigarette machine, the combination with means for forwarding a stream of tobacco from a tobacco feed, of paper guide structure for guiding a cigarette paper strip adjacent the forward end of said forwarding means to receive the stream of tobacco therefrom, and a compressor wheel acting on the top of the tobacco stream to press the same against the paper, said wheel having a slot in its periphery and a narrow stationary compressor tongue acting on said tobacco stream and extending into said slot.

3. In a continuous rod cigarette machine, the combination with means for forwarding a stream of tobacco from a tobacco feed, of paper guide structure for guiding a cigarette paper strip adjacent the forward end of said forwarding means to receive the stream of tobacco therefrom, and a compressor wheel acting on the top of the tobacco stream to press the same against the paper, said wheel having a slot in its periphery and a narrow stationary compressor tongue acting on said tobacco stream and extending into said slot, said tongue having a portion extending through and beyond said slot along the tobacco stream to act as a stripper for preventing tobacco from being carried out of the stream by said wheel.

4. In a continuous rod cigarette machine, the combination with a cigarette rod former, of means for forwarding a stream of tobacco to said former, a compressor wheel having a slotted periphery in contact with the stream to compress the same, and a tongue passing through the slotted periphery of the wheel and having a tobacco engaging portion extending across an upwardly moving peripheral portion of the wheel.

5. In a continuous rod cigarette machine, the combination with a pair of belts arranged in V formation to forward a stream of tobacco from a tobacco feed, of paper guide structure for guiding a cigarette paper strip under said belts, means for warping said belts into parallel relationship to part their lower edges and lay the tobacco on the paper, a compressor wheel acting on the top of the tobacco stream between the parallel portions of the belts to press the same against the paper.

6. In a continuous rod cigarette machine, the combination with a pair of belts arrangedin V formation to forward a stream of tobacco from a tobacco feed, of paper guide structure for guiding a cigarette paper strip under said belts, means for warping said belts into parallel relationship to part their lower Aedges and lay the tobacco stream between the parallel portions of the belts, a compressor wheel to press the same, against the paper, said belts being arranged to contact the side walls of the wheel.

7. In a continuous rod cigarette machine, the combination with a pair of belts arranged in V formation to forward a stream of tobacco from a tobacco feed, of paper guide structure for guiding a cigarette paper strip under said belts, means for warping said belts to part their lower edges and lay the tobacco on the paper, and a compressor wheel acting on the top of the tobacco stream between said parted edges to compress the same.

8. In a continuous rod cigarette machine., the combination with means for forwarding a narrow stream of tobacco, of a compressor wheel structure having a pair of circular compressing surfaces contacting said stream and traveling with the stream at their point of contact with the stream, and an elongated element extending along said stream from between said surfaces in the direction of movement of the stream toact as a stripper for said circular surfaces.

9.*In a continuous rod cigarette machine, the

combination with means for forwarding a narrow stream of tobacco, including a pair of belts arranged in V formation and a web extending along the under side of said belts, means for warping said belts to part their lower edges and lay the tobacco on the web, and a compressor wheel acting on top of the tobacco stream between said parted edges to compress the same against said web.

10. In a continuous rod cigarette machine, the combination with a pair of belts arranged in V formation to forward a stream of tobacco from a tobacco feed, of mechanism for warping said belts toL part'l their lower edges, tobacco supporting means for supporting and guiding the stream of tobacco between the parted edges of said belts and a compressor wheel acting on top of the tobacco stream between said parted edges to compress the same.

11. In a continuous rod cigarette machine, the combination with a pair of belts arranged in V formation to forward a stream of tobacco from a tobacco feed, of paper guide structure for guiding a cigarette paper strip under said belts, means for warping said belts to part their lower edges and permit the tobacco stream to rest on said paper strip, a compressor wheel to press said tobacco in a stream against the strip, and means for driving said compressor wheel.

` GEORGE W. GWINN. 

